Enigma
by Karnia
Summary: He remembered the look in her eyes, buried deep down under all of the suffering, she was pleading and begging for a way out. He couldn't give it to her because he didn't want to let her go. She wasn't sure that it was truly her he wanted to save and not the person he saw through of her. Vincent Valentine X OC.
1. Chapter 1

Enigma

**_Chapter One:_**

_A child's smile and bright eyes shined as the sheets of her bed were tucked around her. "That's my angel," he cooed as he patted her head. "Sweet dreams, love." _

_"__Daddy?" she asked as she flicked her eyes to meet his, crystalline meeting azure. _

_"__Yes?" he asked as he brushed her bangs away from her eyes and kissed the alabaster skin of her forehead. _

_"__I love you, daddy." _

_"__I do too, always, my angel." _

Laughter, delighted and joy-filled, it was supposed to cure all aches. She wished she could remember what it sounded like. Trying to imagine the way it felt to laugh didn't help the pain she felt, her body was wracked with it, broken. Her lungs were on fire and her throat was raw. She had never screamed so much in her life. Her eyes would not dry, tears cleaned her dirty face.

"Please," she croaked after a moan of pain slipped past her parted lips. Her face rearranged itself when pain spiked in her side and another scream irrupted from her vocal cords. Her ribs gave a sickening crack when the second blow was given. It caused pure agony to wrack her body and she wasn't even able to vocalise her pain anymore.

Desperate, she dug her fingers into the soft earth and tried to drag herself away with whatever strength still lingered in her muscles. Her mind and body were weak and exhausted. Her thoughts didn't even string together properly anymore. All she could think of was escaping.

"Get out of my sight."

It was a different type of laughter that was released from his lips, cruel and haunting. She yelped when another physical blow came in contact with her body. Her entire being ached so much that she wasn't sure where he had launched his last attack, she just knew that she wanted it to stop.

"Before I change my mind, _my angel_."

He began to walk away from her then, leaving her in a mess that she would have to clean up later. She wanted relief so badly that she blurted the first thoughts in her mind before she thought about the repercussions of them. "P-Please," she begged. "Give me the Materia, please."

A cruel and twisted smile crossed his lips as he turned around to face her again. He nodded and then walked towards her at a tauntingly slow pace. Fear drove itself through her being and every survival instinct she had told her to run. She knew better though, she wouldn't get far if she tried. He walked until he was ten feet in front of her mangled body and then set the glowing green orb onto the dirt.

"Good luck, _Karnia_…as if that name would make you stronger."

When she was sure he was gone, she used all of her strength to crawl towards the orb. Every millimetre caused pain, which felt like someone had stuck a knife between each of her ribs, to shoot through her sides. She held back her screams, trying to keep whatever dignity she had left.

Tears still leaked down her face and only increased when the shame settled in; she was grovelling in the dirt. Despite the agony of every inch, and the self-hatred she held, she propelled herself forwards. She was completely desperate for the Materia that could sooth all of the aches. It was her only salvation.

He had been careful not to draw blood, but she felt like she had lost gallons of it. Fatigue gripped at her legs and she was sure she wouldn't be able to make it the other half of the way. It was finally too much. Her body had given out on her and she could no longer move. She cried out in frustration as she looked up at the taunting green light of the source of her relief. It was relief that she would never feel.

Sunlight glinted and reflected into her eyes. A pointed metal-covered a shoe had entered her line of sight and the fear was instant. It drove into her mind, overriding every ounce of concentration she was putting towards her task. Now all she could register was the gut-clenching fear.

"N-No!" she whispered. "Please, don't." She cringed away from the new torture device and closed her eyes, trying to shield herself from the pain that would be inevitable.

A leather-clad hand reached to the ground and picked up the Materia. As she watched, the sun burned her retina and she could only see a vague outline of a person in front of it. Relief ran through her veins and settled the tension inside of her gut, but the nausea still remained. Her father did not have long hair, nor did he wear a cloak, however, her unease with the situation did not die down. She had no idea who this stranger was.

He walked towards her with a cautious approach and then knelt in front of her, holding the Materia over her body before he activated it. The sensation was like cooling water running through her body and soothing all of the aches, burns, and cries of her muscles. In that moment, she felt as if she had never felt anything so relaxing in her entire life.

Karnia lifted her eyes and connected them with the stranger's and peered as his scarlet pools which stared back at her. Their beauty stole her breath away. She was captivated, so captivated, that she had not been prepared for the pop and the crack of her ribs being set into place in order for them to hear. A scream fled her lips, however, the relief was almost instant. She felt the intensity of her wounds numbing down to dull throbs and she was grateful.

"Thank you," she whispered as she looked up into his eyes. He did not respond, instead he gently placed the Materia in her opened palms and then stood to his feet. "A-Are you leaving?"

"Yes," he said as he looked over his shoulder at her. "I would suggest that you do the same thing soon before you have no one to help you."

…

He had not been able to stop himself from helping the girl who had lain on the ground with such sorrow and defeat in her glossy azure eyes. He could envision her in his mind perfectly; the chestnut locks of hair that clung to her face, sticky with sweat, tears, and dirt. Her lips were bruised and swollen, along with most of her visible skin. However, through all of the grime, dirt and abuse he could see someone in her, someone he missed deeply, his beautiful Lucrecia.

He remembered the way she had tried to drag herself towards the 'restore' Materia. She had been desperately trying to reach the soothing green orb that would relieve all of the aches and pains that had tormented her body with a cruel grasp. He remembered the look in her eyes, buried deep down under all of the suffering; she was pleading and begging for a way out. She begged him for it.

"_S-S-Save…_"

Was it Lucrecia's voice that compelled him to return to the outskirts of the village that he had met her in? He wasn't sure. Perhaps it was the demon that whispered at the edges of his mind.

"_S-Save her, V-Vincent_."

"Why, Lucrecia?" he murmured as he directed his eyes to the sky with a thoughtful glance. It even felt as if the wind was pulling him back towards the small town, it gently lifted his long hair and cloak with its current.

His love did not vocally respond to his question. However, Vincent wouldn't directly defy her wishes anyways. He was still atoning for his sins and not saving Lucrecia was one of them. He would do anything for her.

Without any more thoughts towards the matter, he turned around and changed his direction. He wasn't sure why, but he wanted to help the broken girl. He wanted to rid the pleading look in her eyes from his mind because he couldn't forget it

…

"I can't do this anymore," Karnia whispered as tears began to flow down her cheeks. Below her, the waters rushed and churned. They looked as if were waiting for her with open arms, they welcomed her to join them in their violent dance.

Her heart wanted it to end and willed her to just step off the edge of the towering bridge, yet her mind screamed every survival instinct at her. The war waged between them and shook her entire being. Karnia knew this was her only option, but her mind told her there was more; no matter how hard she tried though, she couldn't perceive them.

If she ran, she would be hunted and then killed, she knew that for sure. Her father did not give second chances. If she fought, she would only regret it when more pain webbed through her body because of his anger. She had no one to turn to for help, and even if she did, he would kill them just to torment her. However, if she took her own life, she knew she could be free.

_Take his…_

That was impossible because she was not a killer, but he was. Karnia knew that eventually he would go too far and beat the life from her body. After all of the torment and pain, she was a firm believer in not inflicting onto others what she would not desire. She could never take his life…he was her father.

"I don't know what to do," she whispered as she looked up into the sky. She didn't believe in the gods or any kind of divine being. She didn't know what she had hoped to see there. "What gives me the right to take another human's life?"

"What gives him the right to play puppet-master?"

A spark of familiarity shot through her body. She knew the dark and silky tones that belonged to that voice. Karnia peeked over her shoulder with cautious eyes. "You again? I thought you had left."

"I returned," he responded simply.

Karnia turned her head back to the water, it still beckoned her forth. She could hear its soothing lullaby in her ears. The rush of the water would drag her under and end it all if she could just move her legs. Why wouldn't they respond?

She felt his scarlet eyes bore into her back and knew that he was the reason she couldn't. Karnia looked over her shoulder again, just to check. She had been right, he was staring directly at her.

"Why?"

"I couldn't tell you if I tried," he said. His face did not change from its indifferent expression.

"Town's further that way," she muttered with a sour expression as she pointed. She turned back to the water and sighed.

"Are you going to jump?"

"I want to," she whispered in return, "but I don't know how. There is nothing else I can do." Karnia sighed and stared at the bruises on her hands. "Thank you, for helping me out the other day."

"He did not leave me with a choice."

"That's not true," she whispered as she gazed into the black depths of the river. "Everybody has a choice…"

"You have one now," he pointed out.

"I do," she agreed. With a deep breath, she turned around and stepped away from the edge. "Like I said, town is that way."

"I did not return to go into the town," he elaborated.

Karnia lifted her eyes at his. He was unused the fire they reflected because all he could contrast them with were the eyes she had given him the day before, eyes full of desperation and pain. She brushed passed him.

"I don't need your pity."

"I did not offer it," he responded in the same cold tone she had used.

Karnia looked at him curiously, her expression changing. "Do you have a name?"

"Vincent Valentine…"

"I'm Karnia Delmoto," she said with a sigh. "I really am grateful, by the way." Karnia blinked and then let out another heavy sigh as she turned around and began to walk towards her home.

"Why do you choose to stay here?" he asked quietly.

Karnia stopped walking and started to study the dirt under her shoes. There was a million explanations buried deep within, but she refused to admit them. "I have a younger sister," was the simple answer that left her mouth. "I have to go."

"Think about it," he proposed. "If you would like, I will help you." Karnia sighed and continued to walk. "I'll return to this spot in three days at noon. If you're not here, I will assume you're okay on your own."

"Thank you," she said quietly, "however, I'm not sure it's a good idea."

"It's your decision…"

"I haven't been able to make decisions for a long time," she whispered as she looked back towards the bridge. "I'll consider it though."

"I shall be here then."

Karnia looked over her shoulder at him and then averted her eyes to the ground with a heavy sigh. She bit her lip as she stared at the dirt of the road. There was something she couldn't put her finger on, but before it could bother her too much, she turned back and began to walk home again.


	2. Chapter 2

**_Chapter Two:_**

Karnia knew it was hard keeping a collected expression when her father would pick up her sister and spin her around in his arms. She just couldn't take her sister's joy seriously. She felt so separated from her family that she didn't believe what she was watching was real. If felt like an old memory being projected into her sitting room and she was envious of it. Karnia wished that she was Kiara most days because, if she was, her father would still love her too.

The brunette-haired woman pushed herself off the wall and drew back from the room as she headed for the stairs that would lead to her sanctuary. A heavy sigh pushed its way through her lips as she cradled her bruised arm and entered her room. Karnia sat on her bed and held her head in her uninjured hand. Her heart knew that this feeling of cautionary peace in her home was only the calm before the storm and it unsettled her in the most frightening ways. She refused to cry. She would not let her pain show her weakness because she didn't want to give him the satisfaction.

"_How do I even know if he is going to show up_?" Karnia asked herself. Her eyes looked towards the closet of her room that she knew all of the useful clothes had already been emptied from. "_Tomorrow at noon…_"

The door of the room swung open and her father entered. "I have a meeting tomorrow," he informed her with a pointed glare. "Make sure nothing happens to Kiara while I am away."

"Yes," she responded as she kept her eyes directed at the floor. "I will make sure."

"Good. Don't mess up, Angel," he said as he turned around and exited the room, closing the door behind him and letting his unspoken threat linger.

Karnia let a sigh of relief pass and then waited as the fear she always felt when he was around slowly ebbed away. She looked towards the closed door, glad she would escape the torment. She just hoped it would be a permanent escape.

…

Vincent looked into the swirling waters that the girl named Karnia had stood above just three days prior. He was still unsure of why he was there trying to help her, but he had never felt so strongly about something since Lucrecia was alive. He knew it was because of the resemblance and the pain in her eyes. He wished he could have saved Lucrecia from the same kind of pain.

"I didn't think I would come but I couldn't stop myself…"

Vincent looked to his side and saw the girl on his mind leaning against the railing, looking far down the river. Vincent understood her need to be distant and why she sought solitude. He too, knew the same kind of pain.

"So you have decided then?" he asked as he looked where her eyes rested. He saw the freedom she so desperately wanted on the horizon.

"I guess I have," she responded as she looked at him with a flicker of her eyes. "I want to help her so badly, but right now I can't even help myself."

"It's a wise decision," he spoke his thoughts aloud.

"I know I'm not the judge of that," she said with a sigh. "So, how do I know I can trust you?"

"You don't."

"That's fair, I guess," Karnia said as she turned around and placed her back against the railing and watched the road with dull eyes.

"I will come to your house two weeks from now," Vincent said quietly as he looked towards its direction.

"That's not soon enough," she argued as she looked up at his face. "I will lose my resolve."

"Perhaps you should wait longer," he suggested.

"No," she said as she shook her head and looked at the house. "I can't spend another night there…"

"You have no choice unless you want to sleep on the ground outside until I return," Vincent said as he pushed himself away from the bridge and watched for her reaction. "I will return in tomorrow night if the situation is that dire…I need time to gather my companions. What would you estimate the danger-level to be?"

"Come prepared," Karnia said darkly. "I'm my father's favourite toy." Vincent watched as she straightened herself out and began to walk back home. "Thank you," she spoke through barely parted lips. "I know I have asked a lot of you…"

Vincent didn't respond. He crossed his arms and watched as she walking away from him and up the hill. He could tell by the way she cradled her arm that something was wrong with it, not to mention the sickly bruise. He knew he would need backup and he was glad some trusted friends had come to his call of aid and were waiting for him inside of town. Vincent knew that breaking her out of this place was going to be difficult, but now that he saw that same distant expression in her eyes he had once seen in Lucrecia's, he couldn't change his mind anymore. He couldn't just watch another woman die when he could have stopped it.

…

"Where did you go, Sister?" Kiara asked when Karnia walked through the threshold of their home.

"For a short walk to clear my head," Karnia responded with a gentle smile as she closed the door.

"What's wrong with your arm?"

"I hurt it when I was training with father," Karnia lied without any inflictions in her voice to give it away to her younger sibling. She could never lie to her father, but Kiara was a different story. Kiara was innocent and needed to stay that way. "It will heal soon."

"Can I bandage it for you?" Kiara asked with a grin. "And put it in a sling?"

"Sure, if you feel you have to," Karnia said with a shrug as she followed her sister through the house. Once they had entered the bathroom on the lower level of the home, Kiara pulled a 'restore' Materia from under the sink. "That's a little much."

"It will fix any damages to the bone or muscle," Kiara said confidentially. "I want to be a doctor so bad, Sister. Let me help you. I have been studying."

"Alright," Karnia said with a heavy sigh, "have a go at it."

"Yes!" Kiara said with joyful crystalline eyes as she lifted the Materia to her sibling's arm. "I really love how you let me practice on your when you get hurt fighting father. He must not go easy on you, huh? Do you still want to join SOLDIER, Sister?"

It was Karnia's cover for her brutal 'training' with her father. She wanted to join SOLDIER, therefore her father could not go easy on her. She was actual glad about the way her father separated their family from the media for this reason, she could lie to Kiara about joining a program she thought still existed.

"The training is tough," Karnia said as she put on a smile, "but I want to become a SOLDIER so bad that I will do anything."

"Well then, maybe I will join their medical core and I can help you whenever you get hurt, okay?" Kiara asked as activated the Materia. Karnia gritted her teeth because of the pain it had caused to her arm to heal. She guessed that her father had fractured her bone. "There, all done with that," Kiara said with a smile as she turned around and stuffed the Materia back where it belonged. She reached down a shelf and pulled the first-aid kit from the cabinet. The younger violet-haired teen whistled while she bandaged Karnia's arm and then wrapped a sling around it. "I'm finished!"

"Thank you, Kiara," Karnia said as she patted her sister's head.

"No problem," Kiara said as she put the supplies away and then led her sister out of the bathroom. "Now, I am going to make you some soup to make you feel better…canned soup that is, it's all we have."

Karnia smiled. "Thank you, but no thanks," she responded. "I'm not hungry. However, make food for yourself if you are."

"Okay, tell me if you want some," Kiara said with a smile as she walked away and began to hum.

…

Karnia bit her lip and brushed her sister's bangs from her face before leaving a kiss on the teen's forehead. Karnia backed away and frowned as she watched her sister's moonlit face. She looked so peaceful in sleep. Karnia just hoped that peace could stay with her a little longer and she prayed that something would finally go right.

"I'll save you from this place one day," Karnia whispered as she stood up straight. "We will finally be a real family."

Kiara yawned and then turned over onto her side, facing away from the older girl. Karnia reached up to her hair and pulled the red ribbon, which had been holding up her pony-tail, from it. She set the soft fabric down onto Kiara's beside table and then walked away from her younger sibling.

Karnia entered her own room and pulled her hair back up with a new hair-tie. She picked up her backpack from the floor and then exited again, shutting off the light as she went. Karnia descended the stairs and walked into her kitchen with a frown where she dropped her bag. She unsheathed a kitchen-knife from its rack and made her way into the bathroom.

She let the blade of the knife reflect the moonlight onto her face and frowned because she knew this next task would be difficult. She brought the knife down onto the skin in between her shoulders by awkwardly stretching her arm. Crimson blood started to well from the wound and flow downwards until it began to soak her tank top. A hiss left her lips.

"What do you think you're doing, dear?"

Karnia's eyes widened and, before her mind told her to, she turned around and drove the blade towards her father's chest. He simple grabbed her wrist and pressed until her hand seized and she dropped the knife. She swallowed her fear whole, trying not to choke on it.

"_Karnia_…" Her eyes widened and she tried to yank her arm away in a feeble attempt to run, but his grip was too strong. "Were you trying to cut the tracking device from your back?" Tears welled in her eyes as she tried to yank on her arm again. He pressed harder and made her yelp. "Answer me." She began to sob now, everything would be over now that he had caught her. He would not let her live after this betrayal. "Are you trying to _run away_?"

"Please," she begged. "Let me go!"

"I think not…"

Fear built up in her throat as he began to drag her behind him and out of the bathroom. When the basement door came into view, she began to hysterically scream and yank on her arm once again. "No! Please, no! No!"

"You must be punished, we've been through this, my darling," her father cooed. "You're going to wish the thought never crossed your mind after I'm done. Now shush, you're going to wake up your sister."

Karnia's pleas faded to a feeble whimper as he pushed her down the stairs and locked the door behind him. She ran down the stairs and tried to put as much distance between them as possible, however, the basement was a cramped and brightly lit space. In the centre of the room was the metal table that she had sedated on many times before. The memory of the cold metal sent chills down her spine.

"Now, now, my dear," her father whispered as he cornered her. In his hand something metal glinted and made her scream, he was holding a scalpel. "Let me try to fix you once again."

…

"Where is the girl?"

Vincent sighed and looked at the brunette woman who had addressed him.

"Do you think something happened to her?" his other female companion asked as she looked up towards the hill.

"We've been waiting around here since nightfall," the first woman who spoke said. "Perhaps she isn't coming? It's almost dawn, Vincent…"

Vincent didn't answer, instead he began to walk towards the house he knew Karnia was inside of. "Wait here, I'll be back."

...

The house was utterly silent when Vincent pushed open the front door that had been left slightly ajar by somebody. His keen eyes caught movement and he stepped to the side to avoid being seen. When he looked around the corner he saw a man ascending the staircase. Vincent waited until he was sure the man was gone to enter the house. Vincent's eyes remained on the stairs momentarily; the fact that he had noticed several large bloodstains on the man's clothes made Vincent uneasy.

He continued into the house and followed the bloodstained footsteps to a metal door. The threshold had a lock on it, one that needed numbers punched into its keypad. Vincent began to become more pessimistic when he saw that the required numbers of the code all had blood on them and he had a terrible feeling it was Karnia's blood. Her father's fingers must have been covered with the sticky substance.

The cloak-clad man tried a variety of combinations until he heard the lock click and watched the door swing open. He memorised the code as he entered and shut the door behind him, just in case Karnia's father came back down to the main level of the house. Running into him while he was trying to get Karnia out would be bad, he could try to kill her if he hadn't already done so.

When Vincent descended the stairs his mood dropped even more, the downstairs was like a Shinra laboratory, its walls were painted white and the floor was tiled the same colour. The blood that seeped into the floors and the walls was like a colour-splash painting. The crimson smeared across the walls in the shape of a hand and fingers while blood ran in every direction across the floor.

His eyes settled on a mutilated body lying on a metal table in the centre of the room, her once brown hair was soaked through with her own blood and stuck to the table like a magnet. Karnia's blood pooled around her and spilled off of the table, leaking onto the floor. The blood contrasted with the alabaster skin it kissed as it left her body, draining her life. There was nothing Vincent could do for her, she was far past help when he had no supplies with him. Vincent sighed as he turned away from her and walked towards the stairs. He regretted not taking her the night before, like she had asked him to.

"_Am I being punished again, Lucrecia?_" The stairs creaked as Vincent slowly walked up them, each step weighing heavier and heavier in his mind. It was just like before, he was too late.

"W-Wait!" Vincent's eyes shifted to the table again. "Help me…please…it hurts."

Vincent didn't waste time to get to her because she must have been barely alive. Karnia looked up at him through half-lidded eyes and he took in one piece of information; they were no longer the colour of the sky. Eyes the colour of blood stared back into his own crimson ones.

Vincent reached into his pocket and brought out the 'restore' Materia from within it. He held it above Karnia's body and cast 'cure' many times, trying to heal her wounds. The blood still pooled around her and drained onto the floor and he realised that the Materia wasn't working. A frown creased his face as he put more of his energy into the spell, but it didn't help.

"It hurts," she whispered as her eyes reconnected with his.

A creak caught Vincent's ears and he heard the metal door swing open shortly after. He broke eye-contact and looked up at the stairs. "Angel? I've brought you some bandages…surely, you're going to need them with those wounds."

Vincent felt disgust pull at him when he heard the man's voice. He looked into Karnia's eyes again and tried to reassure her with his own before disappearing into the shadows behind the stairs, waiting for the moment to strike. He would get Karnia out of this house if it was the last thing he did.

Vincent watched as Karnia's father walked up to her and smiled. He wanted nothing more to kill the man, but his logical-self told him it was an unwise idea. He didn't know what kind of people were backing Karnia's father. Recklessly killing him was not an option.

Karnia's father cleaned the wounds with a hot cloth until it was soaked with blood and then washed it in the sink at the back of the room. When he returned, he started to dab at her wounds with it again. Eventually, the blood-flow slowed to a stop and now that the liquid was cleaned away he could see the ragged wounds her father had left on her. Her body was truly mangled; Karnia's father must have been exceedingly violent because it looked as if a clawed animal had ripped at her flesh.

"This is a pleasant surprise, it seems as if I've finally tainted you," her father enthused with a grin. "Those eyes of yours are so pretty, _Karnia_." The cruel man finished his work by applying a salve and then bandaging her wounds. "Don't worry, my dear, this will heal quickly thanks to Xia." Her father smiled again. "Now, I must go and tend to your sister. She will be waking soon and I don't want her anywhere near you. I shall be back in the evening. Perhaps you will be able to walk by then."

Her father turned and began to walk away from the scene and Vincent took it as his signal. He leapt out from his hiding spot and smashed Cerberus into her father's skull. The tall man was instantly knocked unconscious from the attack.

Vincent turned to Karnia and gently lifted her up before going up the stairs, two at a time, and entering into the normal-looking part of the dysfunctional home. Vincent spotted a bag in the kitchen and picked it up. "Yours I presume?"

All she could manage in response was nod of her head. Karnia closed her eyes and leaned her head against Vincent's cloak-clad shoulder shuttering as tears began to poor out of her eyes. "Why did this have to happen to me?" she asked weakly.

Vincent didn't respond, but his grip on her body tightened. He would never forget the look of her mangled body on that table. When he thought of it, all he could picture was Hojo standing over Lucrecia, blood dripping from a scalpel. Karnia's father would pay for this.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Chapter Three:_**

"She's incredibly beat-up," Tifa said as she bit her lip and examined the girl beneath her with a quick scan using her eyes. They had gotten far away from Karnia's home that was located between Junon and the Chocobo Farm. His small party had stopped to rest as close as they dared to the house and tend to her wounds. "Have you used the Restore Materia on her?"

"It won't work," Vincent said gruffly as he folded his arms.

"She needs to come back to the bar," Tifa decided firmly as she nodded her head and put her hands on her hips. "We can fix her up there."

"No," Vincent interjected, "she will stay with me. Her father will start looking in cities."

Tifa frowned but nodded anyways. She knew that Vincent was usually right about these kinds of things. He would take this girl and then disappear with her.

"Just allow me to change these bandages," Tifa said as she pointed down to the younger girl's abdomen. "Who knows what her father put on the wounds. He could be trying to make it worse…"

"I'm not so sure," Vincent said as he watched Tifa reach into her backpack and pull her own medical supplies from within. "He sounded like he wanted her alive."

Tifa nodded as she began to concentrate on what she was taking from within the bag. While packing for the trip to the town Vincent had requested they all meet in, she had a feeling she may need to bring a variety of things, including an extra set of clothes. She was glad she had thought of it, seeing as the girl lying in front of her was exposed from the waist up. The only thing that covered her was the bandages wrapped around her torso. Tifa sighed and began to untie them.

"Tell me, Vincent," Tifa began as she looked up at her friend. "Why did you go through so much trouble for her? You don't even know her." Vincent turned ninety degrees to the right in order to avoid seeing something that Karnia probably wouldn't want him to see. Tifa found his actions amusing, but didn't comment on the matter; she had never taken him to be a modest or shy person. "Typical…you're not going to answer. Sometimes I swear you're just like Cloud," the woman said with a shake of her brunette head.

"Why did you go through so much trouble for Marlene?" Vincent retorted quietly as he looked over his shoulder and focused his eyes on Tifa's face. A sheer look of concentration passed her features as she lightly dabbed at the wound with the old bandages, trying her best to clean it.

"Then it's because she was a helpless person in trouble?" Tifa asked herself with a nod of her head. "Could you help me please? I can't hold her up and wrap bandages at the same time you know, at least, not with ease."

Vincent nodded and walked towards them, taking Karnia from behind and holding her up while Tifa wrapped the bandages around the younger girl's torso carefully. "She's really pale…not to mention she doesn't match the description you gave us."

"Something happened while he had her in the basement," Vincent said as he focused on Karnia's jet-black hair, "some kind of experimentation."

"Do you think her father worked for Shinra?" Tifa asked as she cast a look of brief worry at Vincent.

"I don't know…but it's something I'd like to find out."

"Well, if it seems like it's going to be too dangerous to bring her along with you, don't be afraid to bring her to me at the bar," Tifa said with a kind smile. "She can stay with us if you ever need her to. No man will walk into that bar if I don't say that he can. She will be plenty safe with me."

"Thank you, Tifa…"

Tifa nodded as she stood up and patted the dirt from her knees. "Keep this backpack, inside are some old clothes that should fit her and some medical supplies," Tifa said as she placed it down next to Vincent. "I know she has her own pack, but if she needs anything from this one, take them. Oh, and by the way, I took this from a wound on her back," Tifa said as she placed a thin green plate in Vincent's hand.

"A tracking device?" he asked as he looked up at Tifa.

"It seems like he didn't want her going anywhere…I'd get rid of it if I were you, Vincent."

Vincent nodded, walking to the river they were resting towards and then throwing it into it. Tifa watched him curiously, trying to figure out why he wouldn't just destroy it. When he turned back to her, he knew the questions running through her mind just by the look on her face.

"If the water didn't destroy it, which I doubt it did because it was imbedded in human tissue, he will rely on that to find her. He can chase her tracker while I go to the City."

Tifa nodded at him, smiling. "Right."

…

A harsh scream erupted from Karnia's vocal cords before she could stop it. She sat up stiff, drenched in her own sweat as tears ran down her face. She heaved the air around her into her lungs as she looked around and surveyed her location; calm crimson eyes met her own fearful ones.

"Vincent?" she croaked as her tear-filled eyes fell to her hands that were beginning to shake. "I thought-" Karnia cut herself off as she looked back up into Vincent's eyes and then swallowed. "I was, wasn't I? I felt like I died."

"You came close to it," Vincent said with a sigh.

"I-I thought he killed me," she whispered as she ran a shaking hand through her hair. Her eyes widened when she saw the strands that were in between her fingers were no longer their proper colour. "W-What is this?"

"It seems that the experimentation your father performed on you darkened your hair…"

"_Darkened_?" she asked in an exasperated tone. "It has turned pitch black!" Karnia looked up into Vincent's eyes. "Is there anything else wrong with me?"

"The experimentation killed off a lot of your pigmentation," Vincent explained. "Your skin, your eyes…"

"My eyes?" she choked as she looked around her for any kind of reflective surface. It was in that moment that she truly became aware of the fact that the trees glowed like mythral stars around her. "W-…where are we?"

"The Forgotten City," Vincent informed monotonously.

Karnia bit her lip and looked around more. As far as she could see, the forest was littered with the barren and glowing white trees. The midnight-blue sky was lit up by the silvery moon that seemed to hover so close to the clearing they rested in.

"We're up north," she whispered, "by the crater…the moon, it's so close."

Karnia looked towards Vincent again and then dropped her eyes to the ground. Despite the pain that was engulfing a large amount of her torso, she refused to be distracted by it. All she could think about was what her father had done to her and how she had left her little sister with that monster.

"Your bandages need to be changed," Vincent stated as he stood and walked to a tree that was to the right of Karnia. He picked up a bag and then brought it towards her. Karnia bit her lip and looked down at herself, realising she had nothing on but the bandages and a bra.

"I can do it," she said as she looked up at him.

"No," he said sternly. "You will open wounds if you move too much."

Karnia sighed as she nodded and allowed him to begin to un-wrap the bandages.

"How long was I out?"

"A week," Vincent informed.

"A week?" she asked herself meekly. "What did my father _do_?" When Vincent did not answer, she looked at him and his expression unnerved her. "What?"

"Do your wounds normally heal like this?"

Karnia looked down and frowned, there was no sign of the ripping her father had done to her torso. All that remained were dark purple bruises. "N-No…" Karnia took in a shaky breath. "That's never happened before…is it because of what he did to me?" Karnia asked as she grabbed her hair. "Like this?"

"I don't know," Vincent replied quietly. "_Does this have something to do with what he mentioned in the basement? Xia?_"

Karnia sighed and held her head as she tried to figure out what was going on with her while Vincent finished taking away the dirty bandages. The pounding behind her eyes was like someone was trying to drive a nail into one of her irises. It was not pleasant in the least and all she wanted to do was go back to sleep.

"Tifa gave you extra clothes."

"Thanks," Karnia mumbled in response, though she didn't know who Tifa was.

"I'll be back," Vincent said as he placed a gun next to her on the ground. "Do you know how to shoot?"

"Yeah," Karnia said with another sigh as she looked up at him as he walked away. Soon, he had disappeared from sight and Karnia was alone once again.

Even though she was somehow miraculously healed, it still sent shocking stabs of pain throughout her stomach to stand up. After the pain passed, she opened the bag on the ground and retrieved a change of clothing. She stared at the fabric in her hands as tried to push away all of her trouble thoughts so she could focus on the task at hand, twisting and bending.

Karnia smoothed out the wrinkles of the new clothes and then pulled her hair into a ponytail. After she had done everything she could possibly do to occupy herself, her torso hurt so much that she had to sit down again. She picked up the gun Vincent had left her and held it on her lap, feeling safer with it closer to her hands. She was absolutely terrified to be alone in an unfamiliar forest when her father could be lurking about.

"_What if he comes_?" she thought as she peered through the underbrush. "_What if he finds me while Vincent's gone_?"

Karnia swallowed her fear and gripped the weapon tight in her fingers, being careful to avoid the trigger and painful wounds. For a brief moment, she wondered where Vincent went and why he would leave her alone as inexperienced as she was. That didn't seem like the best plan to her, it seemed rather foolish when she really thought about it; Karnia was so inexperienced.

"_This forest is supposed to be protected, right_?" Karnia asked herself as she leaned against the tree behind her and looked around. "_No one can get in unless the forest lets them…surely, the forest wouldn't let someone as bad as my father come in here._"

With her logical thoughts comforting her, Karnia let her grip on the gun ease and closed her eyes. Even though her wounds had healed, so that nothing but bruises and scars were left, she still felt the aftereffect of losing so much blood, it made her so tired. A sudden and more irrational fear stabbed itself into her mind while she tried to relax.

"_What if Vincent left me here? What if he changed his mind and left me alone_?" Karnia drew in a deep breath and tried to sooth herself. "_No, I may barely know him, but I don't think Vincent's that kind of man…_"


	4. Chapter 4

**_Chapter Seven:_**

Walking along side Karnia, who looked so much like Lucrecia, made Vincent's mind dive into his past and bring up all sorts of memories about his deceased love. He used to walk next to her in a similar fashion, as he was assigned to protect her and would not let her out of his sight; however, his devotion to the young scientist went further than that, It wasn't just his duty, he _had _to protect her because he loved her.

He watched Karnia walk cautiously through the small town that he had led her to and knew that she was extremely tense because she was watching for enemies that could be hiding anywhere, at any time. Her muscles bunched and coiled underneath her skin and her eyes darted back and forth until she was sure she had surveyed the entire area around her; she had to assure herself that her father was not hiding somewhere.

"_Perhaps this is where I should leave her_," Vincent thought as he looked towards the town-square. "_Karnia would do well in a small village like this._"

The image of Karnia's mangled body and blood-soaked hair appeared in his mind. Her body was white as a sheet, her eyes lifeless, and her blood was pooling onto the floor like a crimson stream feeding into a sea. He sighed and dismissed the thought of leaving her.

He had considered leaving her in order to be by his lonesome at three different times, but whenever it came to telling her, he couldn't force the words out of his mouth. Every time he wanted to say it, the image of her bleeding and broken body lying limp on that metallic table came to the forefront of his mind. He would not leave her and let her die that way only to return to and realise he had failed to protect her. He would never fail someone he had vowed to protect again. The thought crossed his mind that he had never vowed to protect her in the first place, but he cast it away with a frown. He had rescued her and then proceeded to take her with him afterwards, she was his responsibility.

Vincent turned into one of the shops and Karnia followed behind him, absent mindedly looking around at all the weapons displayed on shelves, racks, and pedestals. "Can I help you?" the man behind the desk asked Vincent as he approached.

"I need a blade for this woman," Vincent said quietly.

The clerk's eyes shifted to Karnia who was staring at the display window. "Certainty," he said as he walked around the counter and then towards Karnia. "Anything in mind?"

"Oh, well I'd like something I can handle with one hand, but could be used with both hands if need be," Karnia said shyly.

"I think a Katana would work well for what you want," the shop keeper said as he walked around the counter and then retrieved a blade from a high shelf.

He pulled the blade free from its sheath and then placed the hilt in her open palm. "How does it feel?"

Karnia took a step back and then checked the balance of the sword in her hand and decided that she liked the lightness of the blade. She lightly swung it and smiled when it cut through the air with a whistling sound. It was nice to be able to hear the cutting sound.

"I like it," she said as she admired the craftsmanship of the metal.

"It's a good length for your arm," the shop keeper said as he folded his arms and lightly stroked his chin with his propped hand.

"How much do you want for it?" Karnia asked as she studied the hilt.

"It's a fine blade," he said with a sigh. "I cannot go any lower than nine-thousand Gil."

"Nine-thousand?" Karnia asked with a raised brow.

"Nine-thousand," he repeated.

Karnia looked at Vincent and then sighed. "Sorry," she said as she took the sheath from his hands and put the blade in it. "It's too much. Find me something cheaper."

"No," Vincent interjected before the salesman could take the blade. Karnia looked up at him with a raised brow. Vincent did not respond to her unasked question, instead he pulled a cloth pouch from within his pocket and tossed it to the shopkeeper. "Six-thousand Gil," Vincent said with narrowed eyes.

The shopkeeper watched the cloaked man for a moment and then hesitantly nodded before walking around the counter once again and counting the money in the bag. "Is that everything?" the man asked, his voice giving away the fact that he just wanted Vincent to leave.

"I'd like some ammunition for my firearm," Vincent said as he turned and approached the counter. He took his gun from its holster and then placed it on the countertop. "It's a triple barrel revolver."

The shopkeeper looked down at the gun and then knelt down to his stock of ammunition that was locked away under the counter. Using a set of keys, he took the lock off and slid the glass door to the side.

"How much would you like?"

"A hundred rounds worth," Vincent said stoically.

The salesman nodded and began to package the bullets. Once he finished, he placed then on the counter. "That will be one-thousand Gil."

Vincent reached into another pocket and pulled a fist full of coins from within and then placed them on the counter, which the man began to count.

"Thank you for your time," Karnia said with a faint smile as she began to follow Vincent out of the shop.

"No, thank you," the shopkeeper said to her as she passed through the doorway.

Karnia looked towards Vincent and then let out a light laugh. "You intimidated that man into giving you the sword at a cheaper price."

"He was trying to take advantage of you," Vincent answered quietly.

"Thank you," Karnia said with a nod. "I can pay you back."

"There is no need for that," he responded. "Keep your Gil and use if it we need supplies."

"Well, alright," she said with a shrug, "if that's what you want."

…

It had been over a month since Karnia and Vincent had first travelled to Tifa's bar; she felt that her strength and skill had grown exponentially. Karnia was now able to defend herself when it came to monsters, but she still felt better knowing that Vincent was around. Something about the man screamed safety at her. Or maybe it was the fact that she had begun to admire him in a different way now that she had grown to know him a little better since she had first met him.

Karnia watched Vincent flip through one of the files that he had retrieved from the Shinra mansion when he had left her at Tifa's. She had a feeling that whatever he was reading had something to do with her. He sat against a tree adjacent to her and he was very quiet.

"_It does have something to do with you_."

It wasn't the same voice that she had first heard when she was at Tifa's bar, but a different one, a male voice. She had no idea who it could be, she was fairly certain she had never heard this man before so she knew for certain that it was not her father, which was a tiny relief. She also knew that this person did not seem to have ill-intentions for her; like the other voice, what he usually said was helpful in some way.

Karnia bit her lip, she wanted to tell Vincent about the voices she had been hearing but did not know how to, she did not want to sound completely crazy by admitting to him that she heard voices. However, what if it was a useful hint about what her father did to her? What if it helped Vincent in some way to know that information? Karnia sighed and then closed her eyes.

"Vincent, is it…_normal_…to hear voices in your head?"

"No," he responded as he continued to read the file.

"Well, ever since you rescued me from my house, I have been hearing two voices from time to time…they say things to me," she uttered as she looked away from him as he looked up at her with a fixed gaze. She could tell by his tone of voice that he thought that the voices were a bad thing, which made her stomach churn.

"What kind of things?" he asked in his usual raspy-voice, but she could tell he was acting calm despite whatever he may have truly felt. At least he didn't think that she was crazy, he just thought that it was bad.

"Usually it's just a comment on something I have been thinking about, but sometimes the female voice tries to help me," Karnia explained quietly. "Sometimes when I am afraid or just being paranoid, she helps me calm down. The male voice only ever talks once in a while and he has always just commented on what I am thinking about. Neither of them have tried to get me to burn things down, or anything crazy like that."

Vincent sighed and then closed his eyes. "I don't know what's causing it," he said softly. "It could be a multitude of things; it could be that your father put the essence of a creature or demon in you and that's what you hear, or it could be Jenova cells, though I doubt it because of what you have just said. It might even be something more personal than that."

"So, like something to do with my family?" Karnia asked with a raised brow.

"Perhaps," he said as he looked at her. "It's hard to say with so little information."

"Should I worry?"

"Only if they try to control you," Vincent replied.

Karnia nodded and then closed her eyes and rested her head against the tree behind her. She let out a yawn. She wasn't feeling tired, but she wanted to act like the information didn't get to her so badly. The essence of a creature or a demon was not exactly something she liked to hear.

"You should sleep if you're tired," Vincent said to her.

"Alright," she agreed with a slight nod of her head. "Could we go get my sister soon? I think I could protect her now."

"No," Vincent answered sternly.

Karnia shot up with her eyes open wide. "Vincent, if she stays there any longer she might get killed!" Karnia said urgently. "We have to go back and help her!"

"It's not a wise idea at this point in time," he responded calmly. "We are not even aware of her whereabouts."

"I know where she is!" Karnia insisted. "She's in that godforsaken house!"

"It is not time yet, you need more training," he said in a tone that Karnia knew meant 'end-of-subject'.

"I made a promise to myself that I would save her from that place," Karnia uttered as she clenched her fists. "What kind of sister am I? First I run away to leave her to take all of the abuse in my stead and then I never return to her?"

Vincent sighed and studied her with his eyes for a long time. Karnia felt like he was trying to see something in her, but what, she didn't know. "Karnia there is something you need to know about your father," Vincent spoke as he looked her in the eyes. "He was the apprentice of a scientist called Hojo. Trust me when I say you're not ready to try and help her."

"Hojo?" Karnia asked as she folded her arms. "My father used to meet with a man named Hojo."

"Yes, as I have said, he was his apprentice."

"Was?"

"Hojo has since perished," Vincent explained, his words bitter.

"Who was this man? Why does he knowing my father make it so we can't go to Kiara yet?" Karnia asked as she scrunched her eyebrows together.

"Hojo was a wicked scientist who was responsible for countless experiments not unlike the ones that your father did to you," Vincent explained. "He is the reason that many wanted to stay away from the science division of Shinra."

"So, he is the reason that people like me exist?" Karnia asked as she looked at her hands.

"There is nothing wrong with you," Vincent said quietly.

"Nothing wrong with me?" Karnia asked as if what he said was a joke. "Vincent, please, I do not need your sympathy. Look at my eyes, look at my skin and hair! If my outer appearance isn't good enough, look at what's inside. I hear voices and when I even feel the slightest amount of anger, I feel an unquenchable bloodlust and insanity somewhere deep inside. Next to that bloodlust, I can feel this power, resting and waiting to be tapped into." Karnia paused. "I've done it once before, when you left me in the forest and I was fighting the monsters. I wanted to kill them all and I liked doing it! I tapped into something that frightened me, something so powerful that it chilled me to the bone. I don't know what my father's done to me, but to say nothing is wrong is the understatement of the century!"

Vincent held her gaze and something about the way he looked at her made Karnia feel like he understood her. It was as if he understood what she was talking about in a way far greater than anyone else could have. There was also something else he was trying to tell her with his eyes, she felt like he was trying to assure her that everything would be okay.

"I'm afraid, Vincent," she uttered as her eyes welled with tears, "I am afraid of what he's turned me into."

He nodded as he stood and approached her, placing his gloved hand on her shoulder as he looked into her scarlet coloured eyes with his russet ones. "Don't be."

…

Karnia saw her sister lying peacefully, sleep blessing her features with complete ease and serenity. Around her sister, thousands of red flowers laid about, making Karnia realise how pale her sister had become; her face was as white a sheet. Suddenly, the flowers began to melt and the crimson liquid that had created them began to run and sink deep into the white bed Kiara lay on. The same red stain began to form all over Kiara's clothes and a sick feeling settled in Karnia's gut. She watched as Kiara opened her lacklustre eyes and stared at the steeling like a face emotionless like a slate. Karnia desperately looked up from her sister and over her shoulder, wanting to call out to Vincent for help, but instead she saw her father holding a knife stained with blood.

Karnia awoke with a scream and then a jolt as her body jerked into the rigid position she sat in. A cold layer of sweat covered her body and made her shiver. Taking deep breaths like she was thirsty for water, she looked for Vincent only to realise that he had left again and she was alone in the forest. The darkness of night fell heavy on her shoulders and the only salvation she knew was the light of the trees, glowing softly white and blue. Karnia wasted no time thinking about the meaning of her dreams, instead she bolted upright and grabbed her katana. She began to run for the exit of the forest, putting one foot in front of the other and using the bioluminescence around her to follow the path she so often took with Vincent. She knew that he said that she couldn't save her sister yet, but she also knew that her dream was a warning. She would not let Kiara die by her father's hand while she could be doing something about it.

The scarlet cloak-clad man's face pushed its way into her mind and she felt tears well in her eyes at the thought of never seeing him again; it was a very real possibility that her father would capture her again, but at least then her sister wouldn't be alone. She finally understood why she was so afraid that Vincent would leave her somewhere and never return. Originally, she thought that it was because she was terrified of abandonment, but she knew that the real reason was because somewhere deep down she cared for him. She didn't want someone that had managed to make her feel so good after so many long years of hating life and feeling utterly broken to disappear. Karnia knew that she would not be able to handle losing the only good thing that had ever happened to her since her mother passed. She needed Vincent in her life and a part of her wondered if he needed her too, but a larger part of her knew that it was Kiara who needed her the most. If she had to die to save her, she would. She didn't even have to think twice.


	5. Chapter 5

**_Chapter Five:_**

Karnia sighed deeply as she watched Marlene play with her dolls. The little girl reminded her of her sister at that age, so innocent and small. Karnia's heart throbbed, she wanted more than anything to go to her sister and help her. She felt like a failure.

"Karnia?" Marlene asked as she looked up at the young woman.

"Yeah?" Karnia replied as she found Marlene again with her eyes.

"Why do you always look so sad?"

Karnia frowned because of how perceptive and mature Marlene was for her age. Even if she was going to be five in a few months, she acted more like a much older child. It made Karnia wonder what kind of horrors the girl had been exposed to that made her mature so fast.

"You remind me of my younger sister when she was your age," Karnia confessed as she looked towards her hands. "I miss her."

"Well, why don't you go and visit her?" Marlene asked with a child-like smile.

"Soon," Karnia replied with a small smile of her own. "I will soon."

"If I were her, I'd be very happy to see you," Marlene said as she looked back towards her dolls and began to play with them again.

Karnia smiled at her innocence, it was plain and pure through her actions and thoughts. It was preserved despite the hard life she had lived. Something about that thought made her happy, it gave her hope that Kiara was still okay.

"Would you like something to drink or eat?" Karnia asked as she looked at the clock in the room. "It's almost three."

"Yes please," Marlene answered with a nod of her head and a bright smile.

Karnia stood to her feet and then walked towards the door before looking over her shoulder.

"I will be right back, do not go wondering, okay?"

"Alright," Marlene said with a nod.

Karnia smiled again and then walked into the hall and down the stairs. When she walked onto the main floor, she saw a blond-haired man sitting at the bar. She raised her eyebrow and looked towards the 'CLOSED' sign in the widow.

"Bar's closed," she said as she walked towards him. Karnia took a closer look at him and then let out an annoyed huff because of her forgetfulness. "I'm sorry, you're Cloud, aren't you?"

The blond man looked over his shoulder at her and then turned back to staring at the bar. "Yeah."

"I'm Karnia," she said as she walked around the bar and towards the back door. "I don't know if Tifa told you, but I am staying her for a while until Vincent returns."

"Vincent?" Cloud asked as he looked towards her.

"Yeah, we're…" Karnia trailed off and let out a sigh. "I'm kind of living with him for a while."

Karnia shrugged and then walked into the back room and opened the fridge. She didn't know why she felt like she needed to explain it to him, but something made her blurt it out anyways. She grabbed a juice box and an apple and then to the bar and took out a small plate. She set the apple on it, took a knife from the drawer and began to chop it up.

"Vincent had to do something dangerous, so he asked if I could stay here for a few weeks."

Cloud nodded as she finished her small task. She turned away from him and threw out the core, after she washed the knife. Karnia returned to the back-room and brought out a jar of peanut-butter.

"Marlene's not allergic, right?" Karnia asked as she held up the jar. Cloud shook his head, so Karnia grabbed a spoon and put some of the smooth peanut-butter on the plate and then returned the jar and washed the spoon. "So how long have you and Tifa been together?" Karnia asked quietly as she picked up Marlene's snack. "Since before Marlene was born? You guys are young parents."

"Tifa and I are not together," Cloud said without removing his eyes from the bar. "Marlene is a friend's daughter."

"Oh, I am sorry, I assumed," Karnia said with a small smile as she took a juice box from underneath the bar. She walked around the bar again and then stopped as her eyes found Cloud's back; she wanted to say something, but didn't know what to say. She didn't know him, but despite that even she could tell that the man was deeply depressed about something. "Well goodbye Cloud, if you're not here when Tifa gets back from the market, I will let her know you stopped by."

"Thanks," he said as he stood up and then walked towards the door. Karnia sighed once he was gone and then turned to resume bringing Marlene her snack.

"Is that Cloud?" Marlene asked with a large smile from the top of the stairs.

Karnia's heart broke a little for her. "I'm sorry sweetie, but you just missed him," Karnia said as she began to walk up the stairs to meet the small girl.

Marlene's smile faded and her eyes fell to the door the blond-haired man had left out of. "He didn't come and see me…"

"Maybe he will come back later," Karnia suggested as she rested Marlene's juice box in between her torso and the arm that was holding the girl's snack. She used her free hand to guide Marlene back to her room. "Why don't you come and eat your snack?"

…

Karnia cut up lemons and limes, set them in the mini fridge under the bar and then she put ice in the freezer. She made sure that the fridge was stalked with orange juice, lemon juice, tonic, and other essentials. She also restocked any alcohols that were low and replaced empty wine bottles with full ones. When she finished that, she washed down all of the tables and the bar. One she finished all of the prep work that Tifa had put onto a list for her, she swept the floors and then moped.

It took Karnia an hour to do her work, but she was satisfied when she finished. She had never minded cleaning, she found that it was something she could use as a tool to distract herself. Whenever she put her mind to it, things were spotless and her thoughts less troubled.

"Wow, the place looks good," Tifa said with a smile as she walked into the bar with a bag of groceries tucked under her arm. "I got some celery, can you slice it into sticks for me?"

"Yeah," Karnia replied as she took the bag from Tifa and brought it to the bar. She took out the vegetable and brought it to the cutting board she had been using. With a quick wipe down, she began cutting.

Tifa walked behind the bar and started to stack napkins and coasters on the bar in several places. "You even washed the dishes for me," she said with a smile. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to clean up last night, I had to break up a bar fight and I was beat tired. I just wanted to sleep."

"If you would like, I can handle cleaning up," Karnia said as she stacked the slices on top of a bed of ice inside of a bowl and then place them in the mini fridge.

"I don't want to put too much work on you," Tifa said with a smile.

"You have to handle drunks every night, I will be fine cleaning up after them," Karnia said with and uneasy smile. In truth, she needed the distraction so her mind didn't dwell on Vincent's whereabouts.

"If you insist," Tifa said with a nod.

"Cloud was here for a little while today," Karnia said quietly as she looked towards Tifa. "He doesn't seem like a very happy man."

"He has some issues to work through," Tifa said with a sad, yet hopeful, smile. "It's just taking him awhile."

"I see," Karnia said with a nod. "It seems like we all have something like that going on."

"Look, you have done a great job today," Tifa said as she looked around the bar. "Why don't you take the rest of the day off? I will put Marlene to bed myself tonight."

"Are you sure?" Karnia asked as she looked around. "I don't mind helping out."

"No, go have a little time to yourself," Tifa said with a smile. "Why don't you go and familiarise yourself with the area?"

"Well, if you insist," Karnia said, using the same words and tone Tifa had with a shrug as she untied the apron from her waist. She placed the cloth garment on a hook that was screwed onto the backroom door and then headed towards the door. "I'll be back in a little while then."

…

Karnia walked aimlessly through the growing city of Edge, but there was only so much of the new city and eventually she found herself wandering through the ruins of Midgar. She was glad she had remembered to bring the handgun that Vincent had left with her because some monsters wandered the ruins too. She felt safer with it, but something at the bottom of her gut reminded her that she only ever truly felt safe anymore with Vincent.

Karnia found herself understanding why Marlene was mature for her age as she walked through the rubble-filled paths. The girl must have lost a lot of family and friends to the disaster. She had been forced to mature by seeing death and destruction at such close proximities. Karnia had known about the meteor, but she never imagined how truly devastating the effects were on the city itself. There was nothing left but rubble and death in the old city. There were even burnt corpses still lying around the ruins, rotting away without proper burial; even the monsters didn't want to eat the seared flesh.

Karnia was surprised to find the ruins of an old church surrounded by rubble that was kept surprisingly well intact despite the disaster. She approached the building with curiosity. Everything else had been practically destroyed, yet the old building had survived. She wondered if it was something other than strong foundations that kept the structure standing.

Karnia came to the door and then peeked into the church, only to be stunned by the sheer amount of flowers she could see at the far back of the building. She wasn't even aware that flowers grew around Midgar before the incident and especially not now that the radiation from the meteor had set into the very soil and water that the land had to offer. Karnia felt there was definitely something supernatural about the church and the land it stood on.

"What are you doing here?"

Karnia jumped when she heard the person's voice and then backed away from the door. In a matter of seconds, the door swung further open and a man she recognised as Cloud stood in the doorway. "Oh, well I was just wandering around and kind of stumbled upon this place," she said nervously as she looked up at him. "I am sorry if I bothered you."

He did not answer her, instead he continued to stare down at her. She wasn't sure what his gaze contained, but she was sure he wanted her to leave. After a moment of intensely looking into the blue-tides of his eyes, she realised that it was not that she couldn't perceive what he was feeling, but it was as if he wasn't feeling anything at all. It concerned Karnia that a person could look so hollow; his face was like a blank slate staring down at her.

"Are you…" she trailed off when her mind wondered if it was her place to ask at all. In that moment she remembered herself and the hollowness she felt when her eyes were held in a trance with the cold waters that rushed from underneath the bridge she wanted to plunge off of. "Are you okay, Cloud?"

Again, he had nothing to say to her.

Karnia frowned and then lifted her hand to her chest, trying her hardest not to fidget with the clothing she was wearing. She knew she wanted to help, but the awkwardness of the situation didn't allow words to leave her mouth again. She barely knew Cloud.

"_It's not my place to try and help him_…"

Karnia nearly jumped out of her skin when another voice echoed around in her head. Its feminine tone was rich and sweet, like honey. Despite its pleasant tone, she found herself deeply disturbed that it echoed inside her head. She was sure no one else could hear it.

"_Was it his place to help you? As you have seen, sometimes it is easiest to speak to the people whom we barely know. Sometimes we just need to help those in need._"

Karnia didn't know what to make of what the voice said. Was it her subconscious trying to speak to her? Was it something her father had caused?

"I'm not sure I'm the one you should be worried about," Cloud spoke up suddenly as he watched her face passively. Her complexion had gone from its usual pale peach colour to as white as a sheet in a matter of seconds.

"Me?" she asked weakly as her eyes reconnected with his. "I'm fine."

As Karnia looked into his eyes she felt as if she shared a strange bond with Cloud, but wasn't sure what it was. It was like she could understand some kind of pain he had experienced, because she had as well, but she couldn't place her finger on it. She felt as if she was missing some kind of piece to a puzzle.

Karnia sighed and averted her eyes to the ground, she knew that she either had to continue what she had started or walk away. She figured that she may appear weak in his eyes if she left without another word and she knew she would be disappointed in herself if she did just that. Karnia also could not rule out what the voice had said to her either; Vincent had helped her and they were complete strangers. Perhaps Cloud needed a fresh perspective.

"Are you alright?" she asked firmly as she looked back into his eyes. "You seem like you're very troubled."

Cloud turned around and then began to walk into the church again. "I don't need your help," he said as he closed the door.


End file.
